AUBURN, Alabama – Auburn has named Clint Moseley its starting quarterback for Saturday's game at Vanderbilt, which we wrote about earlier this night, and coach Gene Chizik says the junior's mission is clear.

Be solid, like as in the first half at Ole Miss, when he was 8-for-8 passing; and don't turn the ball over, period. It'll be Moseley's second straight start. He missed the first four games as he came back from shoulder problems. Now, it's Kiehl Frazier with an injury that affects his throwing. He didn't play last week.

As for Moseley, Chizik said during his Tiger Talk radio show Thursday that the junior has "got to be consistent as he was at the beginning of the game last week. We gave him a lot of throws that were very manageable. But it's all about protecting the football. We've got to get better on third downs. He's got to be able to do that. He's got to be able to manage the team."

Turnovers? Don't ask. Auburn is last in the nation in turnover margin, and has turned the ball over 19 times.

• Will running back Tre Mason get more opportunities against Vanderbilt?

"We feel good that Tre can get that thing 20 times or more," Chizik said.

Mason has broken the 20-carry plateau once, with 22 carries against Louisiana-Monroe. He had 18 carries against Ole Miss.

Chizik said he wants a physical run game, with the offensive line and fullback Jay Prosch leading the way.

"It was good to have Jay Prosch in the game more. That's our thoughts in trying to run the ball and being physical," Chizik said.

• Chizik said Auburn wrapped up a good week of practice Thursday.

"I say that every week, and people are like, 'what in the world?' But it's really a good commercial in how our team has continued to try to improve," Chizik said.

"I have to give the team a lot of credit. They came off a very, very tough road loss in a game, like so many of the others, in the fourth quarter we kept it close and we really felt like we'd win the game. They went right back to work. It was a good week."

• Chizik was asked about the health of the team, especially since four starters missed last week's game.